landscape photography  seas  bosphorus  denizler  urban life  palaces  saraylar  şehir yaşamı  dolmabahce palace  ottoman history  gulls  dolmabahçe sarayı  sultan abdülmecid ı  martılar  boğaziçi  palaces of istanbul  istanbulun sarayları  yıldız palace  

A view of historic Dolmabahçe Palace and Seagulls (Turkish: Martılar) from Şehit Karaoğlanoğlu Steamboat (Şehit Karaoğlanoğlu Vapuru) in winter. The Dolmabahçe Palace (Turkish: Dolmabahçe Sarayı) located in the Beşiktaş District of Şehr-i Istanbul Turkey, on the European coastline of the Bosphorus Strait, served as the main administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1856 to 1922, apart from a 22-year interval (1887-1909) in which Yıldız Palace was used.

The Palace built in 19 th century and ordered by the Ottoman Empire's 31st Sultan, Abdülmecid I, is one of the most glamorous palaces in the world. It was the administrative center of the late Ottoman Empire with the last of Ottoman Sultans was residing there. After the foundation of the Turkish Republic in Ankara, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk transferred all government functions to the youthful capital but on his visits to Istanbul Ataturk occupied only a small room at Dolmabahce Palace as his own. He stayed, welcomed his foreign guests and made a practical center for national, historical and language congress and for international conferences.